Precious-metals concentrator



July 3, 1923.

1,460,452 H. F. SNAMISKA PRECIOUS METALS CONCENTRATOR Filed Jan. 24, 1923 5 2 17 lAfiVENTOR HTTORNEKS' Patented July 3, 1923.

UNITED STATES HENRY F. SNAMISKA, F BREMERTON,'WASHINGTON.

PRECIOUS-METALS CONCENTRATQR.

Application filed January 24, 1923. Serial No. 614,624.

To all whom; it may concern:

Be it known that I, HENRY F. SNAMIsKA, a citizen of the United States, residing at Bremerton, in the'county of Kitsap and State of Washin on, have invented certain new and useful mprovements in Precious- Metals Concentrators; and I do hereby declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable othcrs skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

This invention relates to improvements in concentrators for ores and more particularly to concentrators for ores containing precious metals and the like.

An object of the invention is to provide a suitable concentrator for ores containing precious metals which will be so constructe as to etliciently separate and concentrate the precious metals from the mass of earth and gravel usually collected with said metals when they are mined.

Another object of the invention is to provide a suitable ore concentrator for precious metals which will be provided with a receiving chamber and a plurality of pivoted flumes and means for concentrating and collecting the precious metals from the waste earth and gravel which accompanies said metals when mined.

A further object of the invention is to provide a suitable ore concentrator which will be highly efficient in operation and uite inexpensive to manufacture. Other ob ects will appear as the description roceeds.

In the accompanying drawings which form a part of this application, Figure l is a front elevation of my improved ore concentrator.

Fig. 2, is an end elevation of the same.

Fig. 3, is a sectional view taken on a line 11 of Figure 1.

Fig. 4, is a detail view showing the rifile plates in lowered position and Fig. 5 is a detail view showing the riflle plates in elevated position.

Like characters of reference are used throughout the following specification and the accompanying drawings to designate corresponding parts.

Asuitable frame is provided with a base portion 1, and a plurality of vertically extending supportingmembers 2 which are connected adjacent their 11 per ends by the horizontally disposed mem r 3. A receiw ing hopper 4 is positioned centrally of the I below the screen 7 is frame and adjacent its upper portion ami has connected therewith a chute 5, with a flared skirt 6 at its lower end. Positioned directly under the skirt portion 6 is an inclined screen or sieve 7, which is supported by the braces 8. Adjacent the lower extremity of the screen 7 is a laterally extending chute Qwhich is adapted to carry off the larger stones and matter that will not pass through the screen 7. Positioned a divided separating platform 10, which is downwardlyinclined from its central portion to its outer extremities and serves todirect the mas of earth, gravel and precious metals to the oppositely disposed chutes or flumes 11. These flumes 11 are supported on cross members 12 and are further held in position at their inner ends by means of. the chains {3. The outer vertically' extending supporting members 2. carry a plurality of spaced brackets 14 which support the transversely extending supporting bars 15, to which are attached the chains 16, so misplaced or lost. The lower end of the flames 11 are adapted to engage" a seat on the barslfi. and normally to extend in a downwardly, sloping direction. A plurality of riflles 17 are carriedby the levers 18 and are pivoted at 19 to the said walls of thesaid flumesll and normally rest on the bottom of said fiumes. A connecting rod 20, is connected to the upper ends of the arms 18. and is attached at its outer end to a pivoted let er21 which is operable in a suitable'quadrant22. so that by drawing the lever 21 in one direction all of the rifiles will be elevated, while pushing the lever 21 the opposite direction will lower the said riflles. A suitable transversely extending baflie plate or door 23 is mounted transversely of each of the flames 11, and is held in position by means of the upwardly and inwardly turned hooks 24. A suitable weight 25 is carried by the door 23 and normally tends to hold the same in lowered position.

Cables 26 are attached at the outer ends of the flumes 11, and extend upwardly over the pulleys 27 and 28. and downwardly to a suitable reel or winding device 29, so that the flumes may be raised or lowered as desired.

A foot board 30 is positioned at one side of the frame so that ready access may be had to the flumes when desired. A downwardl and outwardly turned collecting chute 31 is that the same will not be ion positioned underneath the inner ends of the fiumes 11, and is provided at its' lower ends with a door 32 which is operable by a screw 33. A laterally extending pipe 34 is positioned adjacent the top of the chute 31, so that when too much water is allowed to enter the said chute, it will overflow through the said pipe.

In operation the ore is discharged from the inlet 5 through the screen 7 and on the divid'in platforms H), where it will be forced into the flumes 11 by means of a heavy stream of water passing through the pipe 35. The water will cause the h hter portions of the ore, viz, the ravel an dlTlL to be washed down over ,th tiiliett and out the ends of the flumes while precious metal and a very small quanti y of the waste material is collected adjacen said rifiles. The flumes are then elevatedhy'means of th cables 26 so that their inner ends are in the lowermost position and a supply of water is discharged from the outer ends at the same time as the 'riflies are elevated, which action will wash the material and metals collected into the chute'31, where will be dischar ed through the door interwar end to snita le conveyances will transport the'same to ,the nearest ttort'rfhem' the precious metal is separated by;

subjected to a very high temperature of out which .will melt the same s'othat itmay'be drawn off from the bottom of the smelting retort. 'Ihus it will be seen that instead of transporting a large-quantity oiwas'te material with a small quantity of precious metals the retort, it will now be necessary to trans percentage 10! w port only a very small material with the metals. great saving in expense, material heretofore was needlessl ported a great distance as the sme ting retorts are very far remote from the mines.

Many minor changes in detail of construction may be resorted to without departure from the spirit of the invention.

will mean a, much :waste' trans Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:

1. An ore concentrator comprising a frame, a centrally disposed receiving chute, a sloping sieve disposed under said chute, a dividing platform under said sieve, a ve1- tical conduit beneath the platform, spaced pivoted flumes at either side of said platfor raising and lowering said rifiies and means for raising and lowering said flumes. 3. An ore concentrator comprising a frame, a centrally disposed receiving chute, a sloping sieve disposed under said chute, a dividing platform under saidchute, a laterally ex tending discharge chute adjacent said sieve, a water inlet in said receiving chute, spaced pivoted flumes at either side of said platform, pivoted rillles in said fiumes, means for raising and lowering said flames, a collecting chute sitioned'beneath the inner ends of said nines, an overflow therefor, and means for openin and closing the I bottom of said collecting chute.

4; An ,ore. concentrator comprising a frame, a centrally disposed receiving chute,

latform under said sieve, spaced pivotedtimes at either side of said platform a plurality of interconnected ritlies in said times, means for "operating the same, a detachable pivoted weighted d00I'\0I baflie i each.,o:t said flu and means for raisl gor-ldwering said umes.

a testimony whereof I aflix my si ature.

' HENRY F. SNAMI KA.

a slo ingsieve disposed under said chute, a, ash .divi ing. 

